Biotech IPO March Continues; Aquinox and Recro Rise

The IPO wave kept rolling for venture-capital-backed biotech as two life science companies held their first trading day Friday, while another estimated a price range for its public debut and a fourth publicly filed its paperwork.

Meanwhile, Akebia Therapeutics Inc. said it plans to offer 4.9 million shares at a price between $14 and $17 a share. The anemia therapeutics maker is shooting for a Nasdaq listing under the symbol AKBA.

Based in Cambridge, Mass., Akebia would be valued at $283.4 million if the offering prices at the midpoint of the expected range.

The company’s investors include Novartis Bioventures, Venture Investors, Kearny Venture Partners, Novo AS and Triathlon Medical Ventures, in order of the size of their stake.

Also Friday, U.K.-based Quotient Ltd. publicly filed paperwork for a Nasdaq IPO. The diagnostics company aims to list under the symbol QTNT. UBS Investment Bank, Baird and Cowen & Co. are leading the offering.

Quotient is majority-owned by Galen Partners, which holds just over 51% of its shares.

Write to Christopher Zinsli at christopher.zinsli@wsj.com. Follow him on Twitter at @zinsli

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